foamyfrog

I feel like the description is a little bit deceptive. The projector's maximum resolution is 1600 x 1200 which is not full 1080p as the description seems to suggest. That's an automatic deal breaker for me and I think it should be shown more prominently.

ThunderThighs

foamyfrog wrote:I feel like the description is a little bit deceptive. The projector's maximum resolution is 1600 x 1200 which is not full 1080p as the description seems to suggest. That's an automatic deal breaker for me and I think it should be shown more prominently.

buysumtime

I have the GT750 which is the newer model of this projector. Not sure about all of the specs, but I believe the main difference is the fact that the 750 does 3D natively, where as this needs an expensive converter box to utilize 3D. Worth paying the little extra for the 750 if 3D is your thing.

As for the fact that it is 720p, I think most people get bent out of shape over the whole 720 vs. 1080 situation. Truth is, unless one would have them side by side, most people wouldn't be able to tell the difference. Even then, maybe not so. I used to have two samsung LCD tv's, one 720p and the other 1080p, and the 720 had a better picture in my opinion. This is especially true in video games, which these projectors are designed for. I'll take lower res over the extreme lag of most projectors anyday. I have used two different brands of 720p projectors over the past 5 or 6 years, and I have been more than satisfied with the picture quality. That is on screens ranging from 92" to 106". Anyone who has viewed my projectors have always assumed they were 1080 since the picture is that good.

The one caveat with this projector is its main selling point...short throw. Since it is DLP you already start with very minimal range for the throw(just a downfall of DLP vs. LCD). Add in the fact that this model has ZERO zoom capabilities and placement becomes tricky and requires a lot of moving of the projector to get it to fit the screen size. On top of that, the projector has to sit around approx. 10 inches or so from the top or bottom of the screen(depending on if you are placing it on a stand like I do, or ceiling mounting it). Table mounting isn't too bad as moving the projector in small increments to adjust the the image to your screen is a lot easier than hoping you have it mounted exactly as needed to the ceiling. Not much room for error with this one.

All in all, it would be a great toy to use for casual movie watching, game playing, etc.(my main use for it, although it is in use daily for me) As for a serious home theater setup, look elsewhere to a projector that offers more placement flexibility. And as for all projectors, splurge on an inexpensive screen. It makes all the difference in image quality. You can find cheap 16:9 pull down screens for under a hundred bucks. I got one from Tiger direct for under 50!

auctionsaver

michoutdoors wrote:You are Optoma's customer. We are your customer. Look out for YOUR customer. I'm just sayin'........tough love. Two wrongs don't make a WOOT.

lol. that is a great reply. It is isn't woot's fault though. This is the game the projector/tv folks having been playing the last few years. They say 1080p when the res is only 768, 720 or 800.

To correct the person earlier, this is NOT a 720p projector. It is a 1280X800 native resolution projector. My Epson HD705 is one as well though LCD (I suffer from RBE). What this means is that you will get an image about 5" above and below a 16:9 screen. You can crop it to 720p, but you still might have a little light on the bottom or top.

And no, this is not 1600X1200 either. You can't create resolution that isn't there. It basically takes the 1080p or whatever the input is and resizes it, like photoshop, to 1280X800 (or 720p if you give it a crop ).

ThunderThighs

michoutdoors wrote:You are Optoma's customer. We are your customer. Look out for YOUR customer. I'm just sayin'........tough love. Two wrongs don't make a WOOT.

What I'm saying is that I'm not sure that it's wrong. The specs match other sites as well.

I do see what you're saying though. I did quite a bit of research and found this that explained it best (to me):

The projector will support 1080p through the HDMI, but it will be converted back because it cannot output that resolution. After fooling around with the various settings on both my 360 Elite and the GT720, I found that outputting at 720p from the 360 and using the “Game” display mode gave me the best overall performance. Because this was the closest “match” to the native resolution of the GT720, it just appeared to be the best image. However, after outputting the Xbox 360 in both 1080p and 720p via HDMI and letting the GT720 convert the format, it appears that 720p output had a slightly cleaner look, but not by much."-- The Gaming Nexus

amosdudley

ThunderThighs wrote:What I'm saying is that I'm not sure that it's wrong. The specs match other sites as well.

I do see what you're saying though. I did quite a bit of research and found this that explained it best (to me):

The projector will support 1080p through the HDMI, but it will be converted back because it cannot output that resolution. After fooling around with the various settings on both my 360 Elite and the GT720, I found that outputting at 720p from the 360 and using the “Game” display mode gave me the best overall performance. Because this was the closest “match” to the native resolution of the GT720, it just appeared to be the best image. However, after outputting the Xbox 360 in both 1080p and 720p via HDMI and letting the GT720 convert the format, it appears that 720p output had a slightly cleaner look, but not by much."-- The Gaming Nexus

Edit: Or what auctionsaver said.

It's a very deceptive game projector manufacturers are playing. They claim that their projectors are 'HD', but in fact they only support HD _INPUT_, and they actually downscale the signal to a much smaller pixel output.

In the case of this projector, the actual native pixel output is still 'HD', just not 1080p. In the case of the Pyle projector you guys sold a few weeks ago, it wasn't even close to an HD resolution, despite claiming that it was.

auctionsaver

amosdudley wrote:It's a very deceptive game projector manufacturers are playing. They claim that their projectors are 'HD', but in fact they only support HD _INPUT_, and they actually downscale the signal to a much smaller pixel output.

In the case of this projector, the actual native pixel output is still 'HD', just not 1080p. In the case of the Pyle projector you guys sold a few weeks ago, it wasn't even close to an HD resolution, despite claiming that it was.

auctionsaver

The reason that is called the "GT720" is that it is designed for 720p video. Here is a more thorough review.

That being said, I have had a true 720p and now an 800p (epson HD705) projecting on a 92" screen viewing from about 10'. On a still screen, I can almost see the pixels. In any kind of motion such as a game, movie or TV, they dissapear. 720ps are great. My first project was only 480p.

For the price of a 42" 3D LCDTV, you can have 90" 100", 120", or even larger, for game playing. Talk about immersive!

Both of our gaming / projector bloggers find that the GT720 delivers as a gaming platform. No lag, good shadow detail. While consensus is picture doesn't look as good as Epson projectors selling for 3x the price, unlike the Epson's, no lag whatsoever.

Extremely bright projector whether for game playing, movies, or sports

gschade

I have this projector and it is awesome. Super bright and short throw is perfect. I have is ceeling mounted in my basement. 120" screen. You can play kinect no problem, just put the sensor on one of those 2 foot high tripods. Because it is short throw you don't even get a shadow.

Also you aren't limited in size by the depth of the room.

Really a superb product.

1080p hah. Brightness is way more important than resolution. 720p at 120" 8 feet away looks like a theater.

chadpyle

foamyfrog wrote:I feel like the description is a little bit deceptive. The projector's maximum resolution is 1600 x 1200 which is not full 1080p as the description seems to suggest. That's an automatic deal breaker for me and I think it should be shown more prominently.

Your first mistake is assuming "1080p" or "full HD" relates to a well-defined standard... it doesn't. Virtually any display that provides at least 1,080 vertical lines, qualifies; in this case 1,200.

If you're looking for a 16:9 aspect ratio, the highest resolution possible from this projector would (presumably) be 1600 x 900.

chadpyle

amosdudley wrote:It's a very deceptive game projector manufacturers are playing. They claim that their projectors are 'HD', but in fact they only support HD _INPUT_, and they actually downscale the signal to a much smaller pixel output.

In the case of this projector, the actual native pixel output is still 'HD', just not 1080p. In the case of the Pyle projector you guys sold a few weeks ago, it wasn't even close to an HD resolution, despite claiming that it was.

rvw14

With a short throw projector, make sure where you want to mount the projector is close enough to your screen. I have one and I found out that I had to do a ceiling mount rather than the wall I wanted to do. I had to get closer to the screen to get it to fit.

auctionsaver

gschade wrote:I have this projector and it is awesome. Super bright and short throw is perfect. I have is ceeling mounted in my basement. 120" screen. You can play kinect no problem, just put the sensor on one of those 2 foot high tripods. Because it is short throw you don't even get a shadow.

Also you aren't limited in size by the depth of the room.

Really a superb product.

1080p hah. Brightness is way more important than resolution. 720p at 120" 8 feet away looks like a theater.

I agree. Too many people make too much out of resolution. I snicker every time I see someone complain about a sub 60" TV being "only" 720p. Even most commercial movie theaters only project in 1080p digitally. Not many 4K systems out there.

madgonad

chadpyle wrote:Your first mistake is assuming "1080p" or "full HD" relates to a well-defined standard... it doesn't. Virtually any display that provides at least 1,080 vertical lines, qualifies; in this case 1,200.

If you're looking for a 16:9 aspect ratio, the highest resolution possible from this projector would (presumably) be 1600 x 900.

Except you are completely wrong.

This thing is 1280x800. 800 vertical lines. 1080p (full HD) has 1080 vertical lines. If you send it a 1080p signal the projector will scale it down to 720p. Same thing if you sent it 1600x1200.

However, this projector would actually be just fine for Xbox360/PS3.

Why? Because both of those consoles are not rendering the games at 1080p, they are rendering them 720p or worse and upscaling the video to 1080p. That is why setting your Xbox360 to 720p will look better on this projector than setting it to 1080p. Having the Xbox upscale and the prjector downscale creates a distorted image. Sending the image at the lower, but not upscaled 720p quality will look sharp on this display.
So if you want a projector for console games and DVDs - this would actually be a good choice.

auctionsaver

fogtower wrote:I used to be a dealer and I am stil an integrator. Skip their products, all of them. Find an nice Epson unit instead and avoid frustration.

I concurr. Epson makes a great product. They are one of the brands that I have come to trust. When I get a printer, I usually get an epson as well.

For me, the deciding factor was the horrible RBE that I saw on the optima that I briefly own. It seemed well built. I didn't have that with my previous DLP, but after seeing it on the Optima I realized it was better to go LCD: Even if you don't see RBE, someone that comes over might.

Here is what RBE looks like. You really see it during motions scenes or high contrast such as credits. It made me sick enough not be able to watch.

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